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3.71 AVERAGE
3.71 AVERAGE
saw the comparison in a review to Ready Player One and had to give it a try. it was cute/interesting for a book geared towards this age level. I finished it and felt like there were some unexplained weird loose ends, but maybe I didn't pay enough attention to the audio 100% of the time
Not my favorite but my students will like it. Picked it up after selecting it for one of the Book Tasting prizes. Lots of interesting points - WW2, Monument Men, escape the room, boy/girl friendships - but the execution was a little weak in places.
Every kid who loves Escape From Mr. Lemoncello's Library is going to eat. This. Up. Basically, it's an escape room in book form. It's got puzzles and action and adventure and some fun historical multi-cultural details.
I had a few problems with it that bugged me, though. The biggest one was how the main boy characters treated the one girl character. They basically spent the entire book annoyed and aggravated that she was smart. Now, I realize that the character does GROW throughout the book and realize that maybe having a smart female friend is actually a GOOD thing, rather than an annoying hindrance...but there was still a LOT there about how bossy and know-it-all and obnoxiously well-read she was. As a girl, it kinda bugged me. I wonder how girls who read this book will feel about it?
Again...there is character growth...but it's something to think about while you're reading. Still, I probably will end up book-talking this for summer reading because it's going to be insanely popular, and every kid I've given it to has read it voraciously and clamored for more.
I had a few problems with it that bugged me, though. The biggest one was how the main boy characters treated the one girl character. They basically spent the entire book annoyed and aggravated that she was smart. Now, I realize that the character does GROW throughout the book and realize that maybe having a smart female friend is actually a GOOD thing, rather than an annoying hindrance...but there was still a LOT there about how bossy and know-it-all and obnoxiously well-read she was. As a girl, it kinda bugged me. I wonder how girls who read this book will feel about it?
Again...there is character growth...but it's something to think about while you're reading. Still, I probably will end up book-talking this for summer reading because it's going to be insanely popular, and every kid I've given it to has read it voraciously and clamored for more.
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
A fun middle grade book, a mystery laid out in the form of puzzles the young protagonists must solve. It was recommended as “If you liked the Westing Game...” but I’ve found to my disappointment that almost no book has yet been written to compare with the pleasure of the Westing Game. The Westing Game didn’t hide the mechanics of the puzzles from the reader, and thus the reader was able to try to solve the mystery along with the characters in the book. CHTS describes the gameplay of escape games (I’ve played a ton of these), but the reader has no opportunity to solve the puzzles on their own. The puzzles are laid out, but the main character has already worked them out previously and silently.
On the positive side, all of the characters are delightfully drawn, including the adults, and the pace is quick, making it fun to read. it smuggles in some educational facts about the WWII Japanese Internment Camps and the Nisei battalion.
On the positive side, all of the characters are delightfully drawn, including the adults, and the pace is quick, making it fun to read. it smuggles in some educational facts about the WWII Japanese Internment Camps and the Nisei battalion.
Received advanced reader copy from publisher via Baker & Taylor book supplier
Ted is a master of escape room games. So, when his great-uncle dies and leaves Ted the contents of his apartment, Ted is quick to figure out that there is probably more to the apartment than meets the eye. With the help of his long time pal, Caleb, and a new-girl-in-town Isabel, Ted sets off to discover the secrets that may just be hidden underneath all his uncle’s junk.
This was a smart, fast-paced, clever adventure. I was quickly drawn to Ted and Caleb – and Isabel properly irked me just as she was doing to Ted! Not only were the characters appealing, the plot was intelligent. There was no “talking down” to the audience; the author rightly determined his readers are going to be bright so he should speak to them as such. In fact, the fact that the author spoke to the readers rather than down to them means I’ll be recommending this one strongly!
Looking for more grand adventures? Try Jennifer Chambliss Bertman’s Book Scavenger or Chris Grabenstein’s Escape from Mr. Lemoncello’s Library.
Ted is a master of escape room games. So, when his great-uncle dies and leaves Ted the contents of his apartment, Ted is quick to figure out that there is probably more to the apartment than meets the eye. With the help of his long time pal, Caleb, and a new-girl-in-town Isabel, Ted sets off to discover the secrets that may just be hidden underneath all his uncle’s junk.
This was a smart, fast-paced, clever adventure. I was quickly drawn to Ted and Caleb – and Isabel properly irked me just as she was doing to Ted! Not only were the characters appealing, the plot was intelligent. There was no “talking down” to the audience; the author rightly determined his readers are going to be bright so he should speak to them as such. In fact, the fact that the author spoke to the readers rather than down to them means I’ll be recommending this one strongly!
Looking for more grand adventures? Try Jennifer Chambliss Bertman’s Book Scavenger or Chris Grabenstein’s Escape from Mr. Lemoncello’s Library.
I started this book thinking that it would be a similar read to "Ready Player One" by Ernest Cline, but I was surprised. This book was a great read even though I had way too high of expectations for it. I loved the fact that the main character was half Asian and half Jewish. I have a great appreciation for where characters do not fit the mold and have the same characteristics as every other character in middle-grade books. I believe that the one thing that could have used was the pacing of the story and the way that the main character magically finds help from an outside source. (Trying not to give spoilers) I was reading this thinking that the story would have the treasure finding all in one afternoon and then they wouldn't stop until they find it in the apartment. This, however, leads to some great character development and made the story a little more interesting. I loved the story and ate it up in one sitting! Even though I had high expectations from this book it did not fail in the aspects of it is a great treasure hunting story.
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Read this to my daughter. We ready each night and she didn't want me to stop. At a certain point, my daughter did not love what happened and wanted to give this 2 stars, but it held her attention and kept her wanting to read more...so I bumped to 3 because she loved the majority of it.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Kidnapping
Minor: Cancer, Death, Grief, Death of parent
mysterious
fast-paced
Entertaining puzzle mystery. Many books in this genre read like heists, and this book especially so. I have questions about how Ted's puzzles were set up (and if they were answered I must have been distracted - audiobook problems) but this did not detract significantly from my enjoyment of the story.